Just to get this out of the way an 8.9 is a very high score for me. This game had all the makings to be a classic, but it fell short for the first 5 or 6 months. Simply because the game felt so cheap. I would be shooting a guy for a long time only to have him turn around and take me out in no time, its was just un balanced in this respect. Well lately something fixed that cause after a good play session and getting some updates and the Bonus Pack, it's a complete blast to play. It plays smooth i did have it lag a little (even a little bit offline too..) so that's about all the stops this from being perfect. Sometimes it happens in somewhat unreasonable moments, I understand in the first few seconds it goes slow but after 30 seconds...yea that sholdnt happen. Obvioiusly it can be a problem when your battling lots of guys. The good part is a good strategy is to stay out of that big pit of fighting going on and take guys out like that. At some points you'll be forced into that fighting pit but it doesnt slow down all the time. Vehicles cause lag when they go to fast, out side of that they handle pretty flawlessly and each has a good feel of its own. The Bonus Pack adds a good amount of extra vehicles in too. The bottom line its all done as good as anyone else, even as well as Halo 2. (even though they are different types of FPS) If not for the lag its flawless. (maybe a top end rig could fix that too) Of the games modes Onslaught is the most strategic (as strategic as you want it to be) and Deathmatch is as flich and twitch as it gets, meaning no strategy at all shoot what ever you see while things happen to fast for your brain can't comprehend it all. With everything in between... Wheter thats Team Deathmatch a step up from Deathmatch in strategy, because of cover fire and that stuff. Double Domination, a less strategic version of Onalught. Bombing Run is somewhere in between actually giving a sportish feel to the game but keeping it Unreal Tounament 2004 style. Well there's a bunch of other modes too, they are all fun. They all fall somewhere in between Onslaught and Deathmatch. Now graphics are hard to judge my comp isn't great, but it plays the game solidly. Its a little rough looking but overall there isnt much to complain about. Lag and a few rough looking textures. The game gets the job done giving each map a good feel with the sounds and music. Nothing too great, but definitely adds to the game. As for value where do i start, YOU'LL PLAY THIS GAME FOREVER! I seriously think you could play this almost forever. It'll last you untl the new one, even if its not for another 5 years. You can make you own maps and textures and essentially make everything from scratch, it will take you forever but to have a map just the way you like is sick. There's tons of user made mods and even completely different games based off of it which you get for free. I know its obvious that this would happen im just saying you'll get as much as you can ask for out of it. Well its alot of fun, almost too much fun. If it didn't lag we'd have something revolutionary. You get more then you pay for, im done. No im not, download the demo you play Onslaught on the Torlan map, you'l have a good time.
Other Helpful Reviews for Unreal Tournament 2004 (DVD Version)
Unreal Tournament 2004, the next expansion in the growing Unreal Tournament franchise, brings back what you have come to expect from the Unreal franchise and adds in it's own twist, vehicles. Vehicles have been introduce... Read Full Review
Gameplay 9 Graphics 9 Sounds 9 Value 10 Tilt 10 The Good * The massive choices of gaming styles * Gaming Optimisation * Well developed characters The Bad * A little intimidating for newer players when jumpi... Read Full Review
